In a rare legal move, the State police Crime Branch (CB) will line up 97 wildlife enforcers in front of a magistrate to conduct a traditional test identification parade to pick out those responsible for the alleged custodial torture of an ivory trade case suspect at the Forest Department’s headquarters here in 2015. Earlier, the CB had indicted three Indian Forest Service (IFS) officers for torturing the suspect, Aji Bright, to extract a confession from him.
Wildlife enforcers had arrested him in connection with their sweeping investigation into the sale of artefacts carved from the tusks of wild elephants poached for ivory in the Kerala forests in 2014-15. The CB’s case related to the interrogation of Aji in Forest Department custody and the inconsistencies surrounding the circumstances of his arrest.
It found that Aji had surrendered at the Sreekaryam station after the Forest Department named him an accused in the ivory trade case. An IFS officer had received Aji’s custody from the police after signing the release record. However, in court, the forest enforcers said they had chased and arrested Aji.
The CB found that jail authorities refused to accept Aji’s custody after the court remanded him to their charge. A medical examination revealed that Aji had sustained rib and shoulder fractures from blunt force injury. His own allegation was that the officers had beat him with a cloth-covered iron rod to extract confession. He claimed that the torture squad included several visually identifiable officers.
The CB made a list of all officers present at the Forest Headquarters on July 11 and July 12, 2015. They gave the file to the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Thiruvananthapuram, who permitted the identification procedure. The court tasked the Neyyattinkara magistrate to preside over the process on May 21.
Investigators said they have also provided the court a list of 40 officers who are not connected to the case. The ‘non-suspects’ will be interspersed with forest enforcers. The court will conduct the procedure in the presence of Aji.
Forest officers’ version
Forest enforcers have termed the charges against them false and an attempt to undermine the ivory poaching case. They pointed out that Aji had made no mention of custodial torture when presented before the magistrate and had not complained of physical pain.
